Lost and Found
by Vampira of Stalking
Summary: When Roger finally pushes Carmen over the edge, Carmen is determined to make things different in their relationship. Yet when he gets Renee--a girl who helped him through a breakdown--involved, how different will things become? Under renovation.
1. Confront

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Producers, or any of the characters or genius for that matter. Mel Brooks owns all that.

**2nd Disclaimer: **I wrote this, hoping to upload it, but the site me made wait for two days. To pass the time I went around reading some of the Producers FanFics. I noticed that there are some minor similarities between my story and others. I would like to say that it was completely unintentional. If you would like to complain about it, feel free to go ahead. I made this story out of my imagination, and I'm sorry for any inconvenience.

**3rd Disclaimer:** I-

Max: Stop using so many damned disclaimers!

Me: Shut up!

Anyway, I- I actually don't know if this counts as a disclaimer. But I have written the second chapter already (Originally, the 1st and 2nd chapters were one HUGE chapter). I will put that up in a few days (I want reviews for the first chapter!).

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**Chapter One: Confront**

In the heart of New York City, in a small-sized park, Carmen Ghia sat on the edge of a marble fountain. His face was completely buried in his hands, and even from afar anyone could tell he was sobbing heavily. If someone knew Carmen, however, he would not be entirely surprised to find him in a state similar to this. The man was extremely sensitive and was admittedly quite easy to provoke. There were two main reasons explaining why Carmen might have so upset; either he lost his Italian chains or he found his dear Roger drunk and flirting again.

Seeing as his chains were hanging from his neck, it was definitely the latter reason that was making him cry. Carmen and Roger's relationship had been rattled since the premier of Springtime for Hitler. Roger had French-kissed Ulla to fake being straight. While Carmen said taking the opportunity to play Adolf Hitler would have him be a "passing for straight Broadway star," he did not see why Roger had to emphasize it so much and _kiss Ulla._

Carmen had tried to express his feelings about Roger flirting with people such as chorus boys, the "broken down queen," Ulla, and even Leo a number of times. But he was always cut off with the phrase, "It was just flirting." To no extent did arguing help, for Roger most often won in the end. So he just bottled up his emotions as usual. Unfortunately, today broke the boundaries of what Carmen was willing to deal with. All of his emotions came out in a quick streak of pure rage.

Precisely ten years ago to the date, Roger and Carmen met. They used this date for their anniversary, seeing as they were not actually married.

Carmen sat around the heavily-decorated townhouse earlier that day. He was unnerved that Roger had not returned from his "errands," but refused to even consider that he had forgotten. Yet finally Carmen left the house to get himself something to ease the paranoia.

As he approached the local bar, Carmen became quite nervous. _He is not in there. He is not in there,_ he thought over and over again. But he found himself doubting his thoughts. Carmen slowly pulled open the heavy mahogany door, desperately hoping that his fears were not true.

But to his horror, there was Roger, surrounded by a group of people. Worst of all, he was flirting with yet another woman. Carmen could remember every detail of the scene.

_Carmen leaned upon the giant door to steady himself. He stood there, frozen, for a minute or so before taking any action. Finally he found the strength to walk over to Roger. Carmen tiptoed, as though the floor was going to fall through if he was not careful. Soon he stood next to who was once his darling Roger._

_"Ah, darling! Good day!" Roger said with a giggle and a goofy smile. He was obviously drunk off his ass._

_Carmen, without thinking, slapped him straight across the face. He regretted it, for he did not want the crowd to stare._

_"Wow, that hurt! Carmen, why would you do that?"_

_"Why would I slap you across face? Why would I? Why would I do such a 'horrid' thing to you when you've done nothing but be such an angel?"_

_"Exactly, why?" Roger questioned, oblivious to the facetiousness of the statement._

_Carmen widened his eyes, glaring straight Roger. He did not care about how the crowd would react anymore. He slapped Roger three more times across the face, hearing a loud gasp in the background._

_"Carmen! Stop!" Roger shouted, grabbing Carmen's wrist._

_"Why? Do you even know what day it is?" Carmen snapped, yanking his arm away from Roger's grip. The chills that used to run down his spine when Roger touched him were no longer there._

_"Umm…Friday?" Roger guessed as seriously as a drunk could._

_Carmen placed both of his hands firmly on Roger's shoulders, then turned and directly faced him. "It-is-our-AN-NI-VER-SAR-Y!" he gritted through his teeth, "And you've blown it off to hang out with your drinking buddies and FLIRT!"_

_"Darling, it's just-"_

_"Don't say it! Don't you DARE say it! It might 'just' be flirting, but it hurts! I've tried telling you so many times before, but you never listen!" Carmen could feel his cheeks turning red and the tears welling up in his eyes. If he wanted to keep his point, he knew he had to leave before he broke down. And with that, he pushed back Roger and headed for the door._

_"Darling, wait!"_

_"Don't call me that!"_

_"Darling, please!"_

_"I'm not your 'darling' anymore! You've always treated me like the ground you walk on. If you want comfort, go to Ulla, or that broken-down-queen, or even Leo! Just not me! I'm done!"_

_"Darling!" Roger called, as though he had not heard a single word that Carmen had just yelled._

_Carmen spun on his heel and shot a death glare at Roger. He then grabbed a glass off the counter and hurled it at his head. Of course, with Carmen's strength, the glass hit the floor a few feet in front of Roger. It shattered, coating the ground in hail-like crystals. His gaze shifted from the tiny shards of glass to Roger._

_"That glass represents our love: completely shattered and with absolutely no way to repair it!"_


	2. Comfort

**Disclaimer: **I do not own The Producers, nor any of the characters or genius for that matter. That all belongs to Mel-

_Max: You said this already!_

_Me: Again, shut up! Don't make me make you relive what you had to do with Suck Me Fu-_

_Max: No! -shudders-_

Brooks. I _do_ own Renee, however.

I'd like to take a moment to thank the people who have commented on the first chapter. It is so great to write your first story and read the reviews saying that your story is great. It makes me smile when I read the reviews. PhantomBialystock, thank you for the grammar suggestions. I used them to edit the second chapter slightly.

Random questions:

-What sounds better? Ulla's diary entries as she came to America and wound up with Leo, or Ulla breaking up with Leo and Leo falling for a different woman?

-Do you think it was good for me to split up the first and second chapters?

Discuss it in review!

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**Chapter Two: Comfort**

From the bar, Carmen ran into the crisp air of the night. His thoughts became clearer and words started to appear in his mind. _I can't believe Roger! How could he do this? But... did he deserve all that? Yes. He was a complete ass. Right? I mean, he is flirtatious, but he's been so kind to me sometimes. On the other hand, he's treated me like dirt so many different times. I know it meant it, what I said. He completely messed up. He always flirts. Yet I loved him...  
_

As the many thoughts pervaded his mind, Carmen realized he could not resist the tears and came to rest at the fountain. There he let the last of his strength give in and cried. He cried for what appeared to be a half an hour. It was painful for him to relive the occurrences that had just took place. Now Carmen ceased sobbing, for there were no more tears. He sat hugging his legs to his chest. There was a miserable silence.

"Are- are you okay?" a voice sheepishly asked, suddenly breaking the silence.

Carmen was startled by the unknown voice, but managed to reply.

"Yea- yes, I'm fine."

"You don't sound fine," replied the voice.

Carmen opened and closed his mouth several times before finally saying, "Where is your voice coming from?"

"Oh! Terribly sorry, hold on!"

He heard footsteps approach and finally saw a young woman step into the dim light. While he could not get a good look at her through the mist covering his eyes, he could make out the shape of a sketch book under her arm.

"Mind if I sit?"

"That's- that's fine," Carmen replied, still hyperventilating.

"Try taking a deep breath," the girl advised, sitting down next to Carmen on the edge of the fountain. "Here, take this." She held out a handkerchief in her hand.

He took the handkerchief from her palm and mopped his eyes with it "Thank you. I'm sorry about that. I don't usually cry like that," he said, handing her back the handkerchief. He could see clearly now.

Carmen took a look at the girl sitting next to him. He thought she was no more than twenty five. Her hair was grown shortly past her shoulders, the ends in small ribbon curls. While the light slightly obscured the color, he could see that her hair was a toffee brown with a few light caramel highlights. Her skin was tanned, which went along greatly with her dark brown eyes.

She was in a form-fitting black jacket that buttoned at her waist. Underneath the jacket was a white shirt. She wore a black pencil skirt with a slit up the side that went up half her thigh. Black high heels, a crystal choker, and a rose pink belt finished off the ensemble. Carmen was surprised. She knew some things about fashion.

"Anyway, why are you here?" he asked her.

"I like to sketch, and I find it really peaceful by this fountain. At night, not many people come by, and the jets in the water provide a drawing challenge for me," she said, gazing intently at the water shooting up from the bottom of the fountain.

The girl turned back and faced Carmen. "But it's okay. It's okay for men to cry. I've never understood why it _isn't_. So why are you here?"

"Well, I…got in a fight. A verbal one."

"It sounds like you were really hurt. Who was it with? Your lover?"

"How..." Carmen stated, surprised that she knew he was gay. Was it his clothing?

"I had a hunch. While "lover" can be used for both genders, I thought your reaction would help me out. In addition, straight guys will never, ever cry like that. Unless of course, and this is a bit crude, they are having their nuts twisted. At least from what I've observed," she said, completely serious.

Carmen crossed his legs after hearing the last part. He heard the girl suppress laughter.

"What's your name?" he asked her.

"Oh, I'm sorry! You must think I'm impolite. My name is Renee. You?"

"It's Carmen. Carmen Ghia."

"Carmen. Interesting name. Pleasure to meet you," Renee said, offering her hand to him.

"Likewise," he replied, shaking her hand.

"So please tell me, why are you so upset?"

"I'm not sure if I should tell you. It's a delicate situation." Carmen hung his head and looked at his feet, avoiding her eyes.

"Maybe I could help you calm down if you tell me. I swear I won't tell," Renee said, bending forward so she could actually see Carmen's face.

"Promise?"

"Promise," she said in earnest.

Carmen told her the story, becoming more and more upset as he relived it again. At the end of it, Renee's eyes were open wide. Without warning, she reached out for Carmen's hand with one of her hands and patted his with the other. "You can't let Roger run your life. It sounds like you really do love him, but he controlled you."

"I don't think I love him, anymore, though," Carmen muttered in an unsure tone. He could feel himself misting up again. Renee was practically a stranger, but he needed to vent to someone.

"On the contrary. I think there is a very small part of you saying that you wish this could never have happened and you were in his arms right now," she told him with a matter-of-fact tone.

These words overwhelmed Carmen. The tears rushed down his cheeks, and he started to fall over sobbing again. Yet he felt something prevent him from falling. It was Renee.

When he finished crying again, he dried his eyes with his sleeve.

"Thank you," Carmen told her.

"When friends need help, there should always be someone there to support them," Renee said, still helping him regain posture.

"Well, thank you for listening. I'm sorry about-"

"Don't be," she said, cutting him off, "I've helped my friends through issues, some of them actually worse than what's happened to you. Everyone needs to talk about their problems, not complain, but actually seek comfort and support. It's fine to cry."

"Well, I believe you are right about what you said before. I- I think there is a small part of me wishing that I hadn't done that, that I had just done the usual and kept silent. But I feel better now that I've released my feelings, even if it did hurt Roger," Carmen told Renee, realizing that every word he said was true.

"No couple is perfect. Maybe you two just need to talk, have a heart-to-heart conversation."

"That sounds desirable. Do you think we could meet again tomorrow? I feel as though you could help me with Roger," Carmen said admittedly.

"One condition," Renee stated, pulling out her sketch book. "You have to let me draw you. Your head."

"Deal," Carmen said, blushing slightly. He held out his hand. They shook on it.


	3. Can't Sleep

Hey everybody reading this! I'm sorry that this installment is so short! School's just started up and I'm not happy. Anyway, I'll try to keep this updated, but there might be some long pauses between chapters. As I say every chapter, **please review! **Reviewing helps me write!

PhantomBialystock: Yay! Thank you so much for the kind words! In addition, thanks for that correction the word "said." I didn't realized that I'd done that. As for Renee's dialog, I was actually trying for her to be like that (You'll understand later on) so I'm glad you said that. Lastly, don't worry! I'm making sure that she doesn't become a Mary Sue.

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**Chapter Three: Can't Sleep**

After a little more chatting with Renee, Carmen bid her farewell and proceeded to walk home. He still considered the Upper-East side apartment to be his home, even though he was furious at Roger.

_"But where are you staying?" Renee asked him._

_"I'll go back to my apartment."_

_"But what if Roger shows up?" she said__, sounding slightly unnerved._

_"Don't worry. I think he's going to drink his problems away," Carmen stated, reassuring her._

He had experienced this before. Sometimes Roger left the house at six at night and did not return until nine the next morning. What he did for all that time, Carmen was unsure. Then again, he did not really want to know.

As he carefully and quietly turned the key, Carmen felt a small twinge of fear. What if Roger was inside, sitting on the white love seat? What would he do? He definitely did not want to face Roger.

When he opened the door, Carmen was relieved to see that no one was in the living room. He decided to sleep downstairs, however. Waking up Brian, Kevin, Scott, or Shirley was just as bad as waking up Roger if he had been home.

Carmen silently opened the glass door to the lounge. Inside were many mimic Greek statues. They lined the perimeter of the room. In the center of the lounge were two white frilly chairs, matching the love seat in the living room. Between them was a dark brown antique end table topped with a rose pink doily and a porcelain bowl of fake fruit.

Across from the chairs was a rose pink couch. Carmen went over to the couch and collapsed on it with a sigh. He knew that he was going to be too frightened to sleep, so he decided to follow Renee's advice.

_"I've gone through this before. I wrote everything that I didn't like about my ex-boyfriend in a notebook. If you do that, maybe we can think of ways to express it to Roger."_

Recalling scattered pieces of their conversation, Carmen had realized how elaborate Renee's way of speaking was. Although wondering why, he silently admitted that it did help ease him from his agitation.

Carmen opened up the drawer inside the end table. There was his diary and a special gold monogrammed pen that Roger had given him for a previous anniversary. _Anniversary…_ A tear fell down Carmen's cheek just at the thought. He threw the pen at the wall. _Thud!_ Like a dart, the pen was now planted in the wall, sticking straight out.

Carmen laughed. He laughed for the first time in that evening. For an unknown reason, he suddenly remembered Renee's statement about straight men and crying. He laughed even harder. Carmen had to prevent himself from going into one of his giggle fits, for he knew that would wake the crew upstairs.

As the night progressed into the early morning, Carmen filled his diary with complaints about Roger. Some of the strongest were, "Constant flirt," "Heavy drinker," and "Forgot anniversary."

After careful thought, Carmen thought that maybe he should write the things about Roger that had made him love Roger. He pondered for a second, and then began to write. "Romantic," "Handsome," "Kind (sometimes)," and "Great sense of humor" were jotted down into the diary.

As dawn approached, Carmen drifted to sleep. A loud clacking noise made him jump to consciousness. He found that it was his diary, which had fallen to the ground when he shifted in his slumber. While relieved, Carmen realized he should leave before anyone wakes up or Roger comes home. Donning his pinstripe jacket, he headed for the door.


	4. Coming Back

Hey guys! Long time no update (at least on my standards). Sorry, I've been stressed with schoolwork and **Writer's Block**. Although this chapter is short, I hope you will like it! Warning: **CLIFFHANGER!** Yes, it is my first one, and I hope it is a good cliffhanger.

Oh! One more thing! PhantomBialystock seems to be the only one reviewing my work (And if you're reading this, thank you so much, Phantom!). To get more reviewers, I have included a reference. **Post what you think the reference might be in a review, and you will get virtual cookies! OMG! **Hint: Think YF.

So without further ado, may I present chapter 4.

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**Chapter Four: Coming Back**

Though in a half-asleep state, Carmen found himself speeding to an unknown destination. Having left his house at the crack of dawn and receiving almost no sleep, Carmen was amazed at his pace. Since there was not a lot going on around the city at the time and his favorite breakfast café did not open until nine, he decided to head to the most calming place he could think of.

Carmen tried to lift his eyelids open to a fully-awake look so he could gaze at the trees that were starting to appear. With no success, his head returned to its downward angle. The hard concrete had turned to soft gray gravel. Even without looking upwards, Carmen could tell that the buildings were becoming slightly sparser. This allowed for the park that sat within the heart of the city.

There was the fountain. He had never really taken a fine look at it before, but now that it held such a strong memory it was much more to him. Eying the fountain, he could see the gray marble around the edges was smooth and fine. The part of the fountain that stuck up from out of the center was made out of a similarly-colored stone. The water trickled over the rims in pearly streams. Carmen sat on the fountain's edge once again, his hand grazing the marble. Drowsiness overtook him and, making his jacket a pillow, lowered his head down and fell into a much-needed rest.

A droplet of water that had splashed out of the fountain fell onto Carmen's cheek, waking him. He gasped and sat up quickly when he realized that he had fallen asleep on the side of a fountain. What had the people passing by think when they saw him? Did they think he was homeless? _No, no,_ Carmen thought, _my clothes are much too fine to be mistaken for those of a homeless person. But still…_

Carmen let the thoughts empty from his mind and gazed around at the passers-by. None of them seemed to be staring at him. It was only when he turned his head right that he noticed the giant sketch pad next to his head. Carmen was about to say something to the person when the sketch pad lowered, a head peeking from above. It was Renee.

"Oh! Hi Renee!" Carmen said with a smile.

"Ah! Carmen!" Renee yelled, jumping back. "You scared me! I thought you were asleep."

"I was."

"Oh no, did I wake you up?" Renee asked, half-humorously.

"No, no," Carmen laughed, "a water droplet landed on my face."

"Well how long were you dozing?" Renee gasped. "Were you here all night?"

"Again, no. I was at my Upper-East townhouse until dawn. I left because I was afraid Roger was going to show up."

"You didn't get much sleep last night, did you?" she said with a smirk.

"How would you guess?" Carmen asked, a puzzled expression upon his face.

"It's noon."

"Have I really been sleeping here that long?" He held his hand up to his mouth and gasped. "Oh dear!"

Renee went into a fit of giggles at this and nearly fell in the fountain.

"You seem much happier today," Carmen said, pulling her back up.

"You do too. In fact, you're unusually happy for a man who just had a nervous breakdown the previous night," Renee said almost cheerfully. All the memories of the night flooded back to his mind in full detail. Carmen tried to keep his emotions hidden.

"Carmen, are you okay?" Renee asked with a worried tone.

"Yessss, I'm fine," he lied, knowing his words were completely transparent.

"Please, Carmen, I grew up with both my parents being psychiatrists. I can help you," she said, a hand patting Carmen's back.

"Well, it's just… I've been able to keep my thoughts off the subject of Roger for a little while, but I know I need to confront him about this," he mumbled. He was surprised that no tears started to build. There seemed to be a comfort that was preventing him from crying.

"I understand. I want to start planning the conversation, but I don't want you to be crying through it. How about I show you my drawings instead?" Renee said, grabbing her sketchbook.

"Sure."

Renee flipped through her book. It was filled with detailed sketches of different famous people from the thirties.

"I personally like the ones of Fred and Ginger," Carmen said.

"Me too. Hey, here's yours!" she exclaimed, flipping to the next page. There was a picture of a pigeon. Carmen shot her a confused glance.

"Oops! This one is yours."

There was a detailed sketch of him sleeping. Eyes, cheekbones, mouth, eyebrows, hair, they were all perfectly drawn.

"Have you considered doing this for a business?" was all he could manage to say. Renee laughed.

"Yes, at one point. But what I really want to do is become a Broadway actress. It's hard, though," Renee said, a more solemn expression sitting upon her face. "And my parents didn't like it. They wanted me to join the family business and become a psychiatrist."

"Really?" Carmen was intrigued. "Well, I'm sorry you had to put up with your parents. My mother and father didn't approve of me being, uh, gay. So what are you doing right now for a job?"

Renee opened her mouth to say something, but could not find the right words to express her job. _How do I say to Carmen, "Strip club dancer?" _Luckily, she did not have to say anything. For at that precise moment, Carmen's eyes spotted something horrible.

It was Roger, sober and sulky looking, heading right towards them.


	5. Comical

Hey I just want to say three things.

1) I'm sorry it's been, like, two months since I've updated!

2) I want to thank PhantomBialystock for being the sole commenter on my story. And yes, it was "Join the Family Business!" You get virtual cookies!

3) If my writing changes within the chapter, it is because I read Twilight and decided to be more descriptive and stay away from the word "said."

Oh and **I do not own Carmen Ghia, Roger DeBris, or the Producers. And I also do not own Roger Bart (WAH!). I do own Renee.**

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**Chapter Five: Comical**

Carmen's hands clenched the marble rim of the fountain under him. He felt one of his fingernails bend backwards from the pressure, and quickly retracted his hand. Renee seemed to notice the sudden jolt.

"Carmen, what happened?" she asked, her eyes on his hand.

"Roger…" he muttered from the corner of his mouth.

"What?" Renee said, at a volume much too loud for the situation.

"Shh!" Carmen leaned over and whispered into her ear, "It's Roger."

Renee's face went pallor at the words. "Where is he?" she murmured, anxiously turning her head, rather similar to that of an owl's. Truthfully, she was thankful for the diversion. This was truly better than telling Carmen what her occupation happened to be.

"He's the one in the suit. He's walking towards us!" As Carmen uttered the fast-paced words, he raised his eyes to look at Roger. Roger's face did not seem to be focused on them, more as he was just meandering around. There was an upset, grumpy expression upon his face. While Carmen was relieved, he knew there would be an ugly situation if Renee and he did not escape before he caught them.

Yet now that Carmen pondered, was there really something to be caught? It was not as though had been secretly seeing each other. Well, they had been, but not as a _date_. They were not making out or- Carmen shuddered at the thought of doing it with a _woman_, and quickly blocked the idea from his mind.

"…Carmen, Carmen, _Carmen!_" Renee shouted as strong as she could in a whisper. "We need to go. Unless you want Roger to see you."

It was then that Carmen's mind cleared, and he realized how much he did _not_ want to face Roger right now. He turned to Renee and asked, "How are we going to get out of here? I mean, if we get up, he'll notice!"

A smirk slid itself upon her beaming face. "Fall," was all Renee said, grinning madly at Carmen.

"Fall."

"Wait… Renee wh-AH!" Carmen's expression changed to shock when Renee grabbed the sleeve of his turtleneck and proceeded to slip herself off the edge of the marble, falling backwards into the water. Carmen followed, not as though he had a choice in the matter.

The water just so happened to be freezing. It was surprisingly cold for a cloudless, summery day in September. Drifting to the bottom and landing on his back, Carmen was surprised at the depth of the fountain; the floor of it was perhaps three feet below the surface.

Carmen's eyes flickered open. Another face was staring back at him, her chocolate eyes seemed to bore into his mind. Startled, Carmen inhaled. His knowledge had escaped him at the time, thus he forgot that inhaling while underwater would lead to breathing in water.

That is exactly what happened.

Carmen went into a coughing fit and started to flail. He felt hands lock his arms at his sides then proceeded to lift him slowly above the water level. The person stopped when his mouth was beyond the surface of the fountain. Carmen breathed in deep, then faced Renee.

"You startled me!" he accused, but was cut off by Renee putting her index finger in front of her un-parted lips. The sign for silence. She then mouthed the words, "Follow me" and began to walk on her knees around the fountain. Carmen realized what she was doing. The rim of the fountain covered their heads, and they were going to leave by sneaking to the other side of the fountain and getting out there.

_How could anybody forget that breathing underwater would make you cough? _Renee let a small giggle escape her lips at the thought, _only Carmen could manage to be surprised by what happened. Only Carmen._

They soon came to the opposite edge of the fountain. Renee slowly lifted herself onto the rim. She held out her hand to help Carmen. He climbed up, slipped on the marble, and fell back into the freezing fountain. Renee was too afraid to laugh at his clumsiness. When he was out of the water, the two bolted through the park, following the gravel walkway. Many heads turned to look at the odd, soaked pair. Neither of them cared. That was unusual for Carmen.

When Carmen felt that they were far enough away from the fountain (And Roger, for that matter), he tugged on Renee's sleeve to get her to stop running. She collapsed against a tall tree and started to laugh. Hard. Carmen wore a puzzled expression.

"Your face…" she managed to blurt out between laughs.

Carmen remembered how much make-up he'd had on earlier. From her fit of laughter, he guessed that his mascara was running down his face. He looked at Renee's outfit, which consisted of a gray v-neck tee-shirt and a pair of nicely-fitting jeans, noticing splotches of make-up scattered upon the clothing. He started to giggle as well. Renee was now the one to don confusion.

"Your clothes…" Carmen giggled, raising a finger at her shirt. Both laughed even harder. They leaned against the tree. Their feet started to slowly slip out from under them, as a result from their wet shoes. Renee leaned on Carmen's shoulder. That was too much for Carmen, and he collapsed to the ground with Renee following. _Amazing, _Carmen thought while giggling ferociously, _such a scare turned into such a comedy…_

Renee poked Carmen's arm and said, "Sorry about nearly drowning you. What happened there?"

"Oh, it's fine. I was startled by you staring right back at me when I opened my eyes," Carmen said, reminiscing about the not-so-old memory.

"How does this scare you?" Renee asked comically, staring directly into Carmen's eyes. Carmen paused for a second.

"I- I don't know. You _are_ sort of intimidating," he responded, though unsure of his answer. Renee sighed, thinking it went unnoticed. _Great, _she said to herself, _he's already afraid of me. How would I tell him that I dance for other men's delight? He would run..._

Meanwhile, Carmen's thoughts were whirring around rapidly, most of them concerning the sigh. _Did I do something wrong? Does she feel upset now? Can I make her feel better? Maybe I should..._

"Hey," they said simultaneously.

"You go first," Carmen breathed, the laughter replaced by sudden exhaustion.

"No, you go," Renee mumbled while gasping for air.

Carmen slowly explained, "I was wondering if..."

"What?"

"If you wanted to get ice cream?" he finished. Carmen resisted the urge to bite his nails. _No! Those are newly manicured! _He was so busy scolding himself that he nearly missed Renee's reply.

"Sure!" she exclaimed, her face lit up again. "But can we go to my apartment first? I don't want to be soaking wet for the whole day."

Carmen laughed. "Yessss, that's fine."

Renee looked stunned, her eyes wide open.

"What?" Carmen whimpered, anxious again. Renee fell down from her sitting position onto the ground, laughing uncontrollably.

"What. was. that?" she managed to get the words to escape her lips. "That was so weird!"

Carmen frowned at the reaction, but then smiled. He was too happy to be upset. He held out his hand and helped Renee up. They started to walk back to her apartment.

XxXxXxXxXxX

Meanwhile, back at the fountain, Roger continued to pace around. He was _sure_ that he had seen Carmen. Right? He decided to take a rest and sit down on the fountain. He put his hands out and was surprised to feel a smooth, papery object under his right hand. Picking it up, Roger saw the drawing of Carmen's sleeping face.


	6. Casual Feelings

Okay. So. It's been a little while since an update. Sorry! I've been stressed with school and voice lessons and SCHOOL. Did I mention school? I thought not.

Oh, and, I want to thank PhantomBialystock for being my only reviewer! You've really helped me change my writing style. By the way, I hope I don't sound like a thesaurus this time (XD)!

Anyway, a few little notes. First, I've decided to try and write from 3rd person POV (I mean something like seeing from Carmen's perspective, but in 3rd person). Let's see how that turns out. Second, **I. MET. ROGER. BART.**

**YAY.**

...It actually happened in, like, the end of October... But (And I know that I'm not supposed to start a sentence with "but" or "and", _but_ I do it anyway in this chapter! I think...) as Mike Myers once said on Coffee Talk, "Oh my god! I have to go and die now!"**  
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**Casual Feelings**

Carmen's POV

Carmen watched Renee as she crept back by the fountain. Renee had needed to get her bike, but she thought it might be a risk for Carmen to go with her. Just in case if Roger was still there. He doubted it, knowing Roger, but went along with her idea easily. Carmen didn't really like the concept of chancing a meeting with _him._ He giggled as he noticed that Renee was doing the owl-like turning of her head again. Yet the whole day, starting with the sketchbook, caused him to wonder. What was Roger thinking? And why had he come to the fountain? Carmen was deep in thought when a sudden noise startled him.

"Hello? Carmen?" Renee sounded happy, if not a little exhausted. Then again, so was he. They were in wet clothing, had their make-up completely messed up, and had run across a park. But still...

"Carmen, you're scaring me," Renee said bluntly.

"What? Oh, yes. Sorry. Is Roger still at the park?" Carmen was still a bit dazed, not fully out of his thoughts.

"Here's a better question: Did you drink any champagne? You seem a little tipsy?" _Those_ words caught his attention, and almost immediately jerked his smile into a frown. He turned away from Renee.

"What's wrong?" Her concern was sincere. It made the corners of Carmen's mouth turn up in an attempt of a smile. Then the memories rushed back to him. The memories consisting of Roger coming home at three in the morning, and always the same conversation was held.

_Quietly unlocking the door, Roger tiptoed into the Upper-East side apartment. Carmen watched him from the couch, a worried expression held upon his face. Would Roger spot him, or would he be too drunk to notice? Unfortunately, it was the first._

_"Oh! Carmen! Why, you're up late," Roger said with a smile. He stumbled to the couch, sat down, and tried to hold Carmen. Carmen jumped up and moved away._

_"Roger, you seem…drunk," he mumbled after a pause of contemplation. Roger laughed._

_"Why, dear, I'm not drunk. Just a little tipsy! That's all. Here, come sit with me." He patted the cushion next to him on the couch. Hesitantly, Carmen walked back and sat down. He let Roger throw his arms around him. "I love you, you know," he murmured into Carmen's ear._

_"I know." Yet it was good that Roger couldn't see his eyes; they were full of worry and hurt._

Renee seemed worried by Carmen's absence from reality; she was shifting her feet and clearing her throat quietly. Carmen took notice and turned back to face her. "I'm sorry," he muttered, "it's just…Roger used to say that he was a 'little tipsy' when he would come home at three a. m. drunk off his ass." Carmen felt oddly at ease admitting this to Renee.

"Oh Carmen, I'm sorry! I didn't know! If I…I wouldn't…I'm really…" Renee stuttered. Carmen felt the need to make her stop fretting; he didn't like to see her worried. She was being too upset over his own problem!

"Renee!" he yelled a little loudly than he'd liked to. "It's fine. You don't need to be so worried for me." Carmen quickly glanced around to see if anyone was staring at him. Nope.

"But you're my friend, Carmen. It's what friends do," Renee explained. Carmen was touched by her kindness. Furthermore, she considered him as a friend?

"You're right. And we _are_ friends." Carmen loved the sound of that sentence. "Wait, when did we start being friends?"

"Right about when I shoved you into the water," Renee joked. They both burst into another fit of laughter.

"No," said Carmen, becoming a little more morose, "I think we became friends when you first found me at the fountain."

"Aw…Carmen," Renee whimpered, thanking him.

"Well, I mean it. You really helped me that night," Carmen swore to her. Renee _did _help him that night. If it wasn't for her, he would've probably gone back to Roger just like any other time. Renee helped Carmen take a stand for once. And he appreciated it more than he could describe. "Anyway, mind if we stop by my house before going to yours?"

"Sure! It's just…"

"What?" Carmen hastily asked.

"I…I lost my sketchbook," Renee admitted with a pathetic tone.

"Well then, shouldn't we find it?"

"What about Roger?"

"He's not here. I didn't see him," Carmen assured her. He stretched up from his leaning against the tree. The two of them then walked to the fountain. Carmen discovered how beautiful the area actually was. He'd not seen it before, for either he'd been blinded by tears, extremely drowsy, or conversing with Renee. Yet now, with jubilance being his current mood, Carmen could see the fountain in all of its beauty. The sunlight glistened off the marble, making the structure somewhat blinding. From what he could see, the marble was a jet black, almost like an onyx jewel. The concrete below the fountain, the ground, was a pale cream with a dash of orange. It gave the area a hint of an exotic, perhaps Cuban, atmosphere. Not many people were there at the time, thus the only background noise was the splashing of water.

"Oh my stars…" Carmen sighed, peering at the marble of the fountain. "Beautiful."

"You think so? So do I."

"I see why you like to draw here. It seems so…"

"Calming? Inspirational? Open? It is." Renee laughed softly. Carmen glanced at her. She seemed in a trance, similar to him before. Carmen mused that she could stay that way forever, observing the inner beauty of everything. Then he caught her eyes. They were so focused, so striking. Wait—were they green? They were! Yet before he could go on with his thoughts, Renee had shifted and was looking back at him.

Renee's POV

The light had _finally _hit the fountain just right. It was stunning and looked like glitter had been scattered across it. She sighed as she gazed at the _completely_ picture-perfect surroundings. The one time she didn't have her sketchbook. It was so aggravating! Although, the utter beauty offset her irritation. She sighed.

Renee, in the midst of memorizing the area for a drawing, glanced over at Carmen. He was staring at her—eyes specifically. She felt herself blush as she turned and faced him. Carmen seemed a bit startled that she'd noticed him, but didn't break his stare. She giggled lightly. _Wait…I just giggled…I never giggle…I think…_ They both stood, frozen, looking into each other's eyes. Suddenly, Renee understood what Carmen meant by her gaze startling him. Looking at him like this—nearly emotionless, no words being said, was…odd. It made her feel a bit light headed. It had only been a few seconds, and yet it felt like hours that they stood there. Out of nowhere, a picture came to Renee's mind. It was her, leaning in, intertwining her hands with his.

Kissing him.

It was then that Renee cut herself off from staring. The sudden image made her gasp and she stumbled. Carmen instantly rushed over and prevented her from falling.

"Thanks," she mumbled as righted as she righted herself. "Hey, why were you staring at me?"

"Oh, I…um," Carmen stuttered, caught off guard. Renee smiled. He became a little more composed. "I sort of noticed that your eyes were green. Aren't they brown, though?"

"Oh!" Renee gasped. The answer was _not_ what she was expecting. "They're hazel. They shift from green to brown."

"That explains it!" Carmen exclaimed gaily. Both meanings were implied. Renee, after a few moments of awkward silence, came to the realization,

"You know, I've forgotten why we're here."

"Actually, so have I," Carmen discovered.

"Well…want to go get some new clothing and then go for that ice cream you were talking about?"

"Sure!"

Once Carmen was in front of her, Renee smacked her head multiple times. She understood why that experience had been so weird for her. _Stupid! Stupid! You _cannot_ like Carmen!_

Carmen's POV

That was…interesting, to say the least. Carmen had stared at her longer than he'd meant to, but there was a sort of captivation when looking into her eyes. More than that, Renee had returned the gaze. The strange feeling was an unknown for him. He shrugged to himself, trying to shake off the thoughts pervading his mind. "Renee?" he asked, twisting his head around as he flitted towards her bike.

"What, Carmen?" she replied in a mumble, glancing up from her feet. A troubled expression was upon her face.

"Are you…never mind," Carmen stuttered, shaking his head. "What are we going to do with the bike?"

"Oh…I hadn't thought of that…" Renee muttered. Her eyes were back on the ground. This time, he took notice to her sudden depression.

"I have an idea," Carmen stated, walking back to Renee. He then hoisted her up, bridal style, receiving a cry of surprise from her.

"Carmen! Put me down this instant!" she yelled, fidgeting in his arms. Yet there was a joking glimmer in her eyes, and maybe just a touch of…appreciation, perhaps? Carmen laughed under his breath, carried Renee over to her bike, and set her down in the dipped handle bars. Quickly, he mounted the bike and started pedaling. Renee was laughing now.

"I—can't—believe—you!" she managed to say between gasps. Though roaring with laughter, Renee was careful to keep her legs to the side of the front wheel. "Of all the things…" she murmured, trailing off at the end. "Wait, where are we going?"

"To my house," Carmen replied, like it should have been obvious. He continued to pedal on a steady pace. The buildings were blurred as they passed them. Finally, after a few more minutes of riding, Carmen slowed to a stop in front of the Upper-East side townhouse. "Renee, stay out here. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Carmen proceeded to run inside the house. He dashed up the white stairs and directly to his (and…Roger's…) bedroom. "No!" he exclaimed melodramatically when he realized that all of his black turtlenecks weren't there. After a few minutes of silent hysteria, pondering over what to do, Carmen grabbed a _white_ turtleneck and the usual black pants. He quickly changed and scrubbed the make-up off his face. After applying some new make-up, Carmen was just about to sprint out of the room. Then he spotted something. It was brown, leather, and a little tattered. Roger's diary. Following a moment of slight hesitation, Carmen grabbed the diary and ran down the stairs.

Then he heard the quiet click of the door.


	7. Author's Note

_Hey readers! This chapter is an author's note, because I'm going to be renovating my story so far. Why? I realized that I write substantially better in first person. So I'm going to be re-writing all the chapters in either Carmen's or Renee's perspective. This will take a few days, but I hope to have it up soon. And remember; feel free to review my chapters! It would be greatly appreciated._

_Also, as you might have noticed, all my chapters are named starting with a "C" except this one._


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